


9 Lives

by MetalFox



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure, Attempted Murder, Bara Sans (Undertale), Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Humor, I'm Bad At Tagging, Memory Loss, Mystery, Slow Burn, Souls, Witch Curses, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-10
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:53:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26860192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MetalFox/pseuds/MetalFox
Summary: Her name is Dani, she's a witch turned cat, and that's all she remembers.After nearly drowning and somehow winding up in the hands of the Skeleton brothers Dani tries to adjust to being stuck as a cat, but she doesn't get to relax for long as her memories start returning and the people who tried to kill her track her down.Turns out she really, really, messed up.And she's wanted dead by a lot of people.
Relationships: Alphys/Undyne (Undertale), Mettaton/Papyrus (Undertale), Sans (Undertale)/Original Character(s)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 12





	1. Cat Fishing

**Author's Note:**

> I really need to finish my other works.

She can't breathe.

Her eyes snap open as her body reflexively hauls in a huge gulp of air only to be met by the sudden, bitter cold of water flooding her straining lungs.

Instincts take over as she kicks for the surface, following the bubbles up, up, up as her lungs _**scream** _at her, the edges of her vision darkening as the bright orange of the sunset greets her and her head breaks the surface.

It's another five seconds before she actually gets to breathe in air but it's only half-way because there's still water coming up from her lungs, her ribs ache while her nose and throat burn, her breaths come out in full-body coughs while her limbs kick at the water, propelling her towards the sliver of land in her vision.

Thank whatever deity there is that she'd woken up in a river and not the ocean somewhere, she thinks heaving out what little water there was left in her lungs as she stares down at the colorful splatter of rocks beneath her paws……..

_PAWS?!_

Her stomach drops and she stumbles away from her own shadow, tripping over the uneven ground to end up in a tangle of limbs, her head reeling she jerks back up only to lift her front paws up for inspection.

She's not normally a cat.

She's never once woken up as a cat, usually her transformation spell wears off when her mind grows lax from sleep since she had yet to master it completely.

The usual thrum of magic that sits just beneath her skin is barely there, the first thing that she notes, the second thing………she can't remember much.

She knows her name is Dani, that she's a witch, but everything else is a gray mess.

Squeezing her eyes closed she focuses on trying to pull memories forth, the act is painful and she hisses as her skull throbs.

Pressing a paw to the side of her head she feels the blood before seeing it, wincing she drops her arm and looks around with a frown, trying to focus past the exhaustion and dizziness quickly working through her battered body.

A bridge passes over the river, which means there must be a road nearby, standing shakily she hurries away from the cold waters and up through the overgrown grass of the embankment.

Her ears perk up just as headlights cut through the growing darkness to blind her, "Fuck……" her voice sounds raw and it hurts to speak, she swallows roughly and trudges closer to the road.

Now that the sun has set she's beginning to feel the chill, she's still completely soaked through and the river had been freezing.

She's going to freeze to death or bleed out.

Dani stops just a foot away from the road, trembling in the dark she stares at the nearest street light, it's so far away….

Gritting her teeth she wills herself forward, ignoring the growing aches of her body as she approaches the pale yellow circle of light.

It's not much but it's better than sitting in the dark, she blows out a breath and lays down, curling into a tight ball of damp fluff.

Her whole body hurts and try as she might she's struggling to keep her eyes open and mind alert, but it's a losing battle and one she's not even sure is worth fighting.

She only knows her name.

That's all she has.

Someone tried to kill her, or she tried to kill herself, either way she's not wanted…..want if she just gave up? Cats die all the time anyways, her body won't be an issue.

With those last lingering thoughts she finally lets herself slip under the grasp of exhaustion.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Paps you know we can't have pets,"

_What?_

"But Sans she's hurt! Just for a little while, please!?"

_Did someone find her?_

Dani's nose wrinkles as she stirs, blinking away the threads of sleep she realizes right away that she's no longer soaking wet and is surprisingly warm, the second thing she notices is the smell of pasta cooking, and the third thing…..

Skeletons, two of them, are talking back and forth…..the shorter, stockier one seems to be unsure and a little bit tired, while the taller, lankier one is moving his gloved hands around in obvious excitement, trying and succeeding in convincing his friend/brother to agree with him.

"Fine, we can keep her for a bit, but we have to hide her whenever the apartment manager comes by, they charge for pets remember?"

"Rest assured brother I'm the best at hiding things! No one will ever discover our pet!"

The slightly shorter skeleton chuckles and shakes his skull, the white lights in his sockets flicking towards her and then towards the kitchen, "Hey Paps I think your pasta might be-"

"IT'S NOT BURNING!" Paps(?) rushes from the living room and into the kitchen, shouting something else as he moves about the tiny space.

She nearly jumps out of her skin when something touches the top of her head and brushes against one of her ears, she feels her fur stand on end and she blinks owlishly up at the skeleton petting her.

Dani hardly gets a moment to register the texture of his fingers before his hand suddenly scoops under her belly and lifts her up with no warning, a wheezy sound escapes her as he plops down in her spot and sets her down atop his stomach.

How does he have a stomach…? Were they his ribs? Her mind reels as she sits completely motionless atop the skeleton, she has no idea what's going on.

Was she dead? Dreaming? She doesn't remember there being talking, moving skeletons before she woke up in the river but then again she doesn't remember much at all so maybe there were always skeletons?

"Strange cat," he pets the top of her head again, like one would a dog, and turns the TV on leaving her to do as she pleases.

She turns away from the screen and stares at him, his skull is bigger than a human's and his dark eye sockets each contain a white light, he also has a permanent smile upon his face, she tilts her head as she tries to recall if she'd heard of his species before.

There's still a dull throbbing of pain but she manages to remember something she's heard……..monsters…..they were monsters? Monsters and something about the surface, a kid too, but it's all choppy and she shakes her head as the pain gets to be too much.

"Dinner is ready! Can cats eat pasta?"

The skeleton under her touches her head again, "I dunno, why don't we see?"

"Good idea!"

Well, thank goodness they didn't suggest cat food……


	2. Nightmares & Kids

She's scared.

The fear is so sudden and crippling she can't move, she can only lie there and wallow in the overwhelming sense of dread.

She's not even sure what it is she's so scared of but she can't fight it, can't swallow it down and calm her rapid heart beat.

So she lies there in the dark expanse of her mind.

Dani knows she's a sleep, that this is a dream, or a nightmare more like it, but she can't wake up.

The darkness begins to seep away, brief images of faces flash before her eyes but the only thing she can make sense of is the fear, the strong urge to run, and then there's pain.

It explodes in her ribs followed by a sharp blow to her head.

The pain jerks her awake and she scrambles up from the carpet choking on her own tongue, her breathing is erratic and she squeezes her eyes shut in a desperate attempt to even out her heart beat and reduce the throbbing behind her sockets.

Those people, the brief images of faces, they had hurt her, for what reason she's not sure, but at least it's something.

Dani blinks and opens her eyes, wincing against the glare coming from TV, she crawls out from under the coffee table and peers around the living room with a frown.

She spots the time on a digital clock and winces, it's not even dawn yet, stupid nightmare, stupid memory loss…….she drops into a stretch with a groan, working out the leftover stiffness from sleep before making her way into the kitchen.

The Skeleton brothers have been kind to her the past few days but she really needs to find answers.

Now……..she knows they have a lap top, she saw Sans on it after dinner, she just has to find it.

Hopping up onto the kitchen table she's disappointed to find it bare, she turns her attention to the kitchen counters and no luck there.

He must've taken it to his room when he went to bed.

Dani hops back down and hurries back through the living room, scanning each surface just to make sure, before making her way down the hall towards the brothers' rooms.

Her nose and ears have been a big help since becoming stuck in this form, and she honestly doesn't remember what it was like before, she follows Sans' scent and is pleased to see that the door is open just a crack.

Wedging her paw in the opening she pulls it open just enough for her to slip inside.

The scents that hit her nose makes her instantly regret her previous praise at having a stronger sense of smell, her ears flatten back and she wrinkles her nose, it's not that the scents are bad……it's just there's so _many._

Dirty laundry, ketchup, sweat, dust, and some other scents she doesn't know the name of.

Shaking her head she ignores the array of smells and moves swiftly through the dark, spotting the laptop on the bedside table she glances towards the bed to make sure he's still sleeping before picking her way across the room.

She'll just do a quick google search to see if anyone with her first name has gone missing in the area since that's all she can remember, maybe she'll also look up how to help recover from memory loss.

Dani hops up onto the bed, freezing as she stares at Sans' sleeping form in the dark, thankfully the bigger skeleton is facing the wall and has left just enough room on his bed for her to maneuver over to the bedside table.

She has to work fast, it'd be strange for him to wake up and see her on his laptop when she's a cat……maybe she should tell them about herself? Explain the situation……after all they're monsters, they know about magic.

Glancing towards Sans she frowns quietly in thought, she'll go down that route after trying her luck with the laptop.

Nudging it open all her hopes are dashed.

There's a password lock.

Growling softly she searches the table top hopefully, maybe he has the password written down somewhere.

Her search is interrupted by her fur standing on end, the feel of static rushes over her skin and she trembles as she smells electricity on the air, like the scent before a storm.

She knows that smell.

Magic.

Dani peeks back at Sans' finding his back still to her but the wall is bathed in a bright blue light that seems to be emanating from the skeleton, her curiosity draws her closer and she cautiously climbs around his skull, her paws sinking into the pillow until she's face to face with him.

She doesn't know anything about monsters, but she knows what a nightmare is, and judging by the sweat on his skull and the magic trying to seep from a closed socket she'd say he was having one.

Pawing at his cheek bone she doesn't get a response so she braces both her paws against his forehead and shakes his skull slightly, his sockets snap open and the magic in the room is sucked out almost instantly as Sans inhales a deep lungful of air.

His white pupils are small pricks in his sockets and they flick up to where she's perched near his skull, he lets out another shaky breath and reaches out to pick her up, rolling onto his back.

"Did you hear me?" his voice is rough from sleep and she can hear the weak waver to it, like he's trying not to cry, she nods once before realizing what she did.

Sans chuckles low, although there's no humor to it, "You're a weird cat," he mumbles, thumb rubbing against her cheek as his other fingers knead her upper body.

The purring starts up on it's own, she nearly cuts it off, she's not a real cat, she shouldn't be purring!

But……Sans' sockets droop, and she watches quietly as pearls of blue tears gather at the corners, silently rolling down his cheek bones his usual grin missing as he continues to quietly cry while her purring grows louder.

Eventually he drifts back off to sleep, his whole hand engulfing her and keeping her situated atop his ribs, she tucks her limbs under her body and lays her head down.

She falls back a sleep within minutes.

* * *

Dani watches as Papyrus moves around the kitchen in a flurry of movements, he was attempting to cook eggs, bacon, and pancakes all at once on the stove top.

So far he's managing it just fine but she can smell the faint scent of something burning, the lanky skeleton doesn't seem to notice as he flips through a very well-loved cookbook so she takes it upon herself to dial down the switch for the fire with a tiny bit of magic.

Thankfully it works and gives the burning eggs a little bit of a reprieve before Papyrus notices and scoops them onto a plate.

"Mornin' Paps, cat," Sans' hand smooshes against her head and ruffles her fur, leaving it standing up as he makes a beeline for the fridge.

"Sans you're up early! Do you work today?" Papyrus asks, turning to watch his older brother take a few hearty gulps of ketchup straight from the bottle before he answers, "Nah, smelled you cookin' and my stomach woke me,"

Dani blinks, she's gotten used to the brothers' weird habits, Sans like ketchup, Papyrus LOVES spaghetti, the only reason he wasn't cooking it for breakfast was because he was expecting a guest and wanted to impress them with a HUMAN BREAKFAST, as he worded it.

But she still doesn't quiet get their anatomy………skeletons are just, skeletons. They shouldn't have organs or anything but they both seem to act as if they do, so she just, doesn't think too hard on it.

Her head already hurts enough as it is.

"Frisk is coming by shortly, Toriel has an important board meeting so we will be watching the tiny human," Papyrus explains as he finishes with the last bit of breakfast, making up three plates…….Dani pouts.

Sans grins nods as he accepts a plate and walks towards the living room with it in one hand and his ketchup bottle in the other, "NO! Breakfast is supposed to be served at the table!" Papyrus cries, quickly darting after his sibling.

Dani eyes the unsupervised food and makes her move.

She leaps up onto the counter and quickly grabs a slice of bacon, she's not fast enough, "BAD CAT! THAT IS HUMAN FOOD!"

She falls off the counter, keeping her firm grip on her prize she scurries across the tile flooring making a beeline for the empty china cabinet set against one of the kitchen walls.

"Aw come on Paps she just likes your cookin'," Sans says, his slippered feet coming into view as Papyrus' gloved hand tries to swipe at her, the lanky skeleton crouching before the small opening as he makes a few attempts to retrieve her.

Dani quickly scarfs down her bacon, ignoring his hand as she eats he eventually huffs and gives up, "I guess she can have a bit, it's not everyday a cat gets to try The Great Papyrus' cooking!"

Before she can crawl back out from under the cabinet the doorbell rings "FRISK IS HERE!" Papyrus shouts, rushing out of the kitchen to answer the door.

Sans places a bit of bacon and egg in front of the cabinet before following his brother, Dani smiles and sneaks out from her hiding place to enjoy her breakfast.

Small footsteps sound on the tile, drawing her attention away from the food she looks up just in time to be picked up with no warning, she's crushed against a small chest and she wheezes.

"A kitten! When did you get it?! What's it name!?" The child rubs their cheek against the top of her head as she struggles to breathe, making a soft sound of alarm when they suddenly hold her out at arms' length.

Frisk, she guesses this is the person Papyrus was talking about, stares intently at her with dark almond-shaped eyes.

"We rescued her! We haven't decided on a great enough name yet," Papyrus explains as the child continues to study her.

"She didn't meow,"

"Huh?" Papyrus asks, frowning.

"Cats meow all the time, when I picked her up she didn't meow or hiss…." Frisk explains, Dani glances towards the skeleton brothers, feeling extremely exposed.

This kid is smart.

"She's a weird cat," Sans explains.

That seems to be enough, cause Frisk sets her down and hurries over to join them at the table for breakfast.

Dani's head spins as she stands there, she really should try and talk to them……being a cat is beginning to suck.


End file.
